A Kiss With a Fist
by LyssaLa
Summary: It's always a normal day at school when an Apocalypse decides to descend. One minute Eren is trying to pass his chemistry class & the next he's wielding a baseball bat against bodies trying to bite him. Along with Mikasa & Armin, they are forced into a world where all it takes is one bite & you're dead. (Modern Day Zombie AU; Rated for violence, language, & sexual situations)
1. The Incident

_In a sudden burst of ideas __(aka watching too much of The Walking Dead),_, I'm actually starting an ongoing fic ^^ This particular fic is co-authored by myself and Jason (dendensushicosplay on tumblr). I had the main plot and chapters thought out and asked if he would read overt his chapter because he's better at writing action than me and we decided to make it a joint effort. And hopefully he'll keep on me so I update on time lol _The title is from the song "A Kiss With a Fist" by Florence and the Machine._

_So I hope you all enjoy the first part, its kinda slow going I know but please let me know how you like it. I've never written anything like this before so I'd really, really appreciate any feedback __(good, bad, constructive whatever you feel ^^)_ from you lovelies! 

**Summery: **_ Its always a normal day at school when an Apocalypse decides to descend on the world. One minute Eren is trying to pass his chemistry class and the next he's wielding a baseball bat against these things trying to bite him. Along with Mikasa and Armin, they are forced into a world where all it takes is one bite. One bite and you're dead. (Modern Day Zombie AU; Rated for violence, language, and sexual situations)**  
**_

**Pairing: **_Eren/Mikasa (is the main pairing and one that will be developed over the chapters; there might be others along the way)_

**Rating: **_M (for violence (against zombies lol), language, and eventual sexual situations)_

**_The Incident_**

It was only 1 p.m. and the world had already gone to hell. Eren swung his bat, knocking one in the head sending it down to the ground in a heap.

He hadn't been doing anything noteworthy when he realized something was wrong. He was walking to class, maybe looking for Mikasa and Armin.

A chill went down his spine, filling his stomach with dread. He pulled his arms back and let the wooden bat crack against a skull, sending the thing down a set of stairs. Armin was probably with Mikasa somewhere and there was no place safer. He couldn't worry right now. Fingers brushed over his back causing Eren to swing his bat behind him, coming in contact with a groaning body. He wouldn't have even believed it if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes.

The scream had been first. Eren had taken off for the sound only to see what he thought was a person hunched over a hysterical girl. It wasn't until Eren shouted that the thing looked up at him, blood and God only knew what else dripping down its hollow face. Eren's stomach lurched, resisting the urge to throw up on the spot.

Eren bolted down the stairs when he saw an opening. Screams mixed with the sounds of the creatures moving through the halls filled his ears. People were still alive, running by him at top speed, but that didn't stop hands from reaching out around every corner grabbing and biting whatever they could get. Eren used the handle of his bat to push one away that came out from a nearby hallway. He had to get out of these halls but there was no way he could leave Mikasa and Armin.

"Dammit," he groaned, swinging his bat at another one coming at him.

He was lucky, some jock must have dropped the bat nearby where he saw that girl. He grabbed it and went after the thing over her; he had seen enough movies to know to aim for the head. The force the wooden bat hit with surprised even him. Eren watched the thing go down before turning to the girl laying on the ground. She was already dead, Eren knew that much. He should have expected the way her body snapped back up, her arms lunging for him, but not even seeing it could prepare him. Eren raised the bat above his head before slamming it down on hers until she stopped moving.

He didn't notice the blood splattered on his uniform until much later.

Now the school was crawling with them, every exit was a pile up of struggling students and hoards of those things grabbing anything they could reach. The screams and shouts only seemed to draw them closer, so Eren kept his voice down even though every part of him wanted to call out for his friends.

The hallway to the left seemed empty enough as he made a quick turn. His hands gripped onto the bat he held up, ready to hit anything he could see. Nothing was there so far, just a few empty classrooms, all with doors wide open. The students must have already evacuated, or rather ran for their lives.

A loud scream made Eren's head snap back to the hallway he had just come from. A guy was pulling hopelessly on a girl who had gotten caught in the grasp of one of those things. Their screams were only dragging more to surround them. Eren spun around to go help but it was far too late at this point; there was nothing that could save them now.

He felt the strong, chilling grip on his shoulders. He frantically swung his arms, his bat going at anything he could hit. The force of his movements sent him out of the creature's grip and into the classroom nearby. He landed on a desk, crashing into it and hitting the tile floor. Scrambling, Eren turned on the ground as he attempted to scurry away, hands still reaching for him. He raised the bat to hit it in its head, but the face lurking underneath the dead eyes made him stop.

"Thomas?"

The thing made no acknowledgement as it kept moving towards him, but Eren knew that face. They had second period History together. Thomas. Thomas Wagner.

Eren's back hit the wall of the room. He held his bat in front of him but he couldn't will his body to move.

"It's not him anymore. It's not him." Eren muttered the mantra as he gritted his teeth while the body that used to be Thomas kept moving forward at him. He had taken down dozens of these things and yet this was the first face he knew. His body was frozen.

It let out a noise and reached down for Eren.

"Move," he tried to tell himself. He kicked his foot up into its stomach, knocking it back but it came right back for him. Eren braced himself, his hands grasping the bat as hard as he could. The creature made a noise as it halted in its tracks.

Eren saw a long blade slice through its neck, its head and body falling in two different directions. It wasn't too much of a surprise to see Mikasa standing over him, her sword firmly in her hands.

"Go for the back of the necks," she said in her usually calm voice. "It avoids seeing the face."

Even though he knew they were in immense danger, seeing her face and hearing her voice sent relief through his whole body. She was okay. A little blood splattered, but okay.

She held out a hand to him, helping him up to his feet. "We should go before we get cornered in here."

Eren nodded, his grip tightening on his bat once more. He glanced over her shoulder. "Is Armin not with you?"

Something flashed across her face. Panic. "No, I figured he was with you."

"Shit. We have to find him." Eren rushed back out to the hallway, knowing Mikasa would follow.

More screams. More sickening groans. Where the hell could he be?

"Eren, we have to get out of here." She had her eyes down a nearby hallway.

He turned to look at her. "No, Armin is-"

"Smart. He probably figured it out before anyone and got out. If we stay, we will die. This place is overrun." She motioned him to follow.

Eren hesitated as she turned the corner, but he couldn't leave her either, not when he just got her back. He followed after her, finding her by an exit door that led down to a stairwell.

"If he's not outside, I'll come back in and look for him." She had her hand on the doorknob, her eyes meeting his."

"I think you mean _we'll_,_" _he corrected. "If you think I'm letting you out of my sight again in this place, you're crazy." This was not the time for heroics. Not when one bite was all it took to lose everything. Eren saw Mikasa's face change, soften a bit as she looked at him but a nearby scream changed that.

"That was closer," she said, her face steeling up once more. "The stairwell might be overrun but there's no way the normal exits are any safer. You go down first and I'll follow backwards behind you, okay?"

Out of the corner of his eye he could see them slowly turning the corner at them.

"Eren."

"Okay." He looked back to her. Everything about this was crazy, but they'd have time to figure that out later. They had to get out first. Mikasa swung the door open and Eren went in, the door quietly closing behind them. The first flight seemed clear but he still held his bat up, ready to strike if needed. Eren could feel Mikasa's back brush up against his every now and then as she walked backwards. He glanced over at her, her dark eyes focused on the stairs above them.

He wasn't even sure he could properly express how thankful he was that her presence was back with him again. It was something normal. Something comforting.

They rounded the first corner. One more flight and the door outside would be right there. It was becoming increasingly clear they weren't alone. Eren could see them around the corner of the stairs, at least five bodies shuffling towards them.

"We have to go." Mikasa's back was pressed against him; he could feel her body tensing up. Eren turned his head to see a hoard of them on the stairs above them. He had no idea where they came from but it didn't matter. They had to move.

"Run," Eren whispered through his teeth.

Mikasa turned around, sword in front of her as he began to take off down the stairs. He swung his bat when they got closer, knocking one down. He jumped over the body as the sounds of Mikasa's sword cutting through flesh filled his ears. Another hit, another one down.

Eren could see the door, red exit sign shining. Mikasa took another one out next to him as he ran to get the door. He kicked the door wide open, feeling the warm summer air hit his face. He turned to make sure Mikasa was still behind him when he felt the hard grip of a hand grasp onto him. The ones behind them must have caught up already. But the feeling was gone before he could make a move. The hand fell to the ground along with the body and the head. Mikasa grabbed onto his arm and pulled him out the door, slamming it shut behind them.

Neither of them needed to say a thing. They both started running as fast as their legs would take them to the front of the school. It was surprisingly quiet, nothing outside and the door seemed to stay shut keeping the ones inside for now at least. They were on the backside of the building, thankfully not the side with the track and fields. He didn't even want to think about what that looked like right now. It was strange though, coming from such chaos to a place where the world looked normal again.

Eren reached his arm out to stop Mikasa when they reached the corner of the school that led to the front and to the parking lot. Running in there head first would be a death wish. Trying to keep his panting as quiet as he could, he peered around the corner.

It was swamped. There were some cars speeding away from the school, but the way to the parking lot was filled with those things lurking. Some were distracted and huddled around people who didn't make it out, but not enough distracted for them to sneak to a car. And worst of all, Eren couldn't see Armin's blond head of hair anywhere.

"Any ideas?" he turned to Mikasa, whose eyes were also assessing the situation.

"We need to get to your car. That way we can be safer moving and figure out a way back in for Armin. Running is dangerous but it's our only option."

Eren nodded. He figured it was going to be that way. "Hey," he nudged her with his shoulder. "We made it this far after all."

"You wouldn't have if I hadn't been there." Mikasa glanced over at him and he could see that small smile pulling at her lips.

Eren rolled his eyes. "Oh, my hero. Have any more bragging to do before I faint from being in your presence?"

Mikasa shot him a look, but couldn't hold back a small smile. It was refreshing to see Eren hadn't lost his sense of humor in all of this.

"Ready?" he asked.

Mikasa nodded, holding her sword out. "Ready."

Eren ran out into the main area of the school yard knowing Mikasa was right behind him. That seemed to get some unwanted attention. They had to move. He scanned the area as he ran, eyes skimming for a good escape route. His eyes locked onto the area by the fountain. If they could run by that and jump over the fence, they could as least get his car.

His car. He drove Mikasa to school this morning. She kept hitting him on the shoulder because he had woken up late again and was making her late. Her smile while she was doing it told Eren she hadn't been all that mad though. It seemed like years ago.

Mikasa's hand grabbed onto the back of Eren's jacket, halting him in the center of the school yard. Eren turned to ask her what the hell was going on, but he didn't need to, he heard it. A loud, revving engine filled the air causing those things to just pour out of the school and completely block their route. Fuck. They were trapped, and clearly the creatures had caught wind of them as well.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw the cause of the commotion. A blue SUV was barreling towards them, creatures flying in all directions as the car tore through them. Eren was one step from throwing himself at Mikasa to get her out of the way when the car skidded to a halt in front of them, momentarily blocking them.

"Well, it took you two long enough."

The sound of the voice sent relief through Eren's veins.

"Don't just stare at me, get in already." Armin gestured to the back seat doors.

Eren swung open the door closest to him and jumped in before quickly turning around and reaching his hand out to help pull Mikasa on. She grabbed onto his hand but was suddenly jerked back out of the car. Eren dove halfway out of the car, still grasping onto her as he saw the culprit. A few had walked around the car, and one had its hand firmly holding onto Mikasa's red scarf pulling her into the rest of the ones reaching for her.

Her face was red, choked gasps coming from her lips. Eren reached over her shoulder, grabbing onto the tail of the scarf taking the pressure off her throat. He quickly wrapped his other arm around her and threw his weight back backwards, wrenching the scarf out the thing's hand and pulling Mikasa back in the car with them. Armin didn't even bother to wait for them to shut the door, the sudden movement of the car shut it just good enough.

Mikasa had landed on top of him, but with the way Armin was driving that would have happened anyway. A sharp turn nearly had them falling off the seat. Eren reached down to hold up Mikasa's face. She was red and still breathing heavily but she looked okay. He ran his hands down her arms. No bites either.

"Be careful with that thing," he muttered, gesturing to the red scarf that was always around her neck. "Clearly they aren't as stupid as they look."

She nodded as he helped her sit up before he glanced up at Armin's eyes watching them in the review mirror. "Yes?"

"How was your day, kids?" he asked with a small grin.

"I've had better." Eren glanced out the review window, they were leaving the school in the distance, but he could still see the staggering masses of bodies moving around. "How did you get out? We were looking for you." He turned back around, the familiar scenery of the ride home from school passing them by.

Armin had to maneuver through a sea of abandoned cars on the road; houses and buildings empty all around them. It looked like this might not have been a contained case.

"I knew something strange was going on. I was hearing strange whispers from people, seeing odd things. I must have been one of the first people who figured it out because by the time I got to my Grandpa's car, it was a blood bath by the entrance."

Eren could see bodies in the cars as they passed. It looked like some hoard had already gone through.

"I knew you two would make it out so I waited where I could see the exits better. Noise attracts them, as I'm sure you noticed, so since I was quiet and in a contained area they left me alone."

"But what the hell are they?" Eren asked, Mikasa watching the both of them quietly.

Armin glanced in the mirror. "Do you want me to really say it?"

"God no, please don't call them that."

"We need to call them something. This is happening and we need a plan."

"Biters," Mikasa spoke up causing Eren and Armin to look at her. "What? They need a name if you don't want to call them…you know. It just feels appropriate."

"Biters, huh." Armin turned down a side road that seemed a little clearer of cars. "Well, it makes sense. One bite is all it takes...from what I can tell, anyway."

"What's the plan then?" Eren said. "I know you already have one, Armin."

"Well, I had to do something while you two took your sweet time."

Eren kicked the driver's seat chair.

"Okay, okay," Armin rolled his eyes but there was a smile on his face. Eren knew it wasn't because of the situation, but they were together, they were safe for now. A little bit was right in the world again.

"I'm taking us home right now to make sure our families are still there. If they are, maybe they know more than us. If not…" Armin hesitated, his fingers tapping anxiously on the steering wheel. "I suggest we get supplies and go find them. We need to stay in numbers. The more eyes and hands we have the better."

It seemed like a fine plan to Eren but judging by the way these houses on their street looked he suspected he wasn't going to find his mom sitting at the table waiting for him. He had to swallow a lump in his throat.

"Your mom is more resourceful than any of us." Mikasa's voice made him jump. She always knew what was on his mind. "I'm sure she's fine."

"I'm sure they're all fine." Armin put the car in park on their street, all three of their houses right in a row. Eren looked over at his house. He'd lived there all his life, Armin his neighbor since the day he was born. Mikasa moved in on the other side of his house when she was about nine. It had been the three of them from then on. It was still the three of them Eren had to remind himself.

"Okay, it doesn't look like there are any Biters wandering around," Armin said peering out over the steering wheel. "But be quiet. Mikasa, come over to Eren's after you check in on your house. I'll do the same."

She nodded in response as Armin unlocked he doors. She opened her door, grabbed her sword that had fallen on the floor earlier, and slipped outside, Eren following her so only two doors needed to be shut. Baseball bat in hand he took off towards his front door as he lost sight of the others. The door was locked which was a good sign. He carefully pulled his keys out of his pocket and opened the familiar wooden door.

"Mom?" he called as the door shut behind him. "Dad?" He walked down the hallway that led to the kitchen, normally where is mom was when he got home from school. "Mom?" A little louder. "Dad?"

No answer, and no one in the kitchen. He was about to walk out to check the rest of the house but something on the fridge caught his eye; a folded piece of paper with his name on it. He took it off the magnet and opened it to see his mom's familiar handwriting.

"Eren," it read. "If you are reading this than I'm sure you know what's going on. Your father called me when he had his suspicions from the hospital and made sure I had plenty of time to leave for somewhere safe. I know Mikasa and Armin are with you, so be sure to let them know her parents and his grandfather are with me.

"I wanted desperately to come and get you kids at school but your father said it was already too late and that we needed to leave right away. He said that Armin and Mikasa would be safe as long as they were with you, so you keep them safe, you hear me? I want to see all three of your faces at your father's research lab as soon as you can. I know it's a ways away, but just be safe. Your father said to stay together at all times, travel while its light out, keep up provisions and just get here when you can."

Her handwriting started to get rushed and sloppy.

"I love you, Eren. Be safe. Don't worry about me. Mr. Ackerman is with us, he knows what to do in these kind of situations. Just worry about yourself and your friends, okay? Love, Mom."

Eren wondered in anyone knew what to do in this situation, but everyone was safe. That's all that mattered. He looked up from the note to see Armin and Mikasa standing in the doorway.

"They're all safe. They're with my mom." He folded up the note and shoved it in his pocket. "We need to get to my dad's research lab. That's where they went."

"That's a few cities away; it's at least five hours on a good day." Armin crossed his arms as he leaned up against the wall.

"Longer since she said to not travel at night, nor should we take the highway and risk getting stuck."

"Well, grab what you need and come load up the car at my house," Mikasa said, starting to leave the room.

"Why your house?" Eren asked.

She turned with a small smile. "My dad's a cop. Wait till you see what he left us."

Mikasa hadn't been kidding. Both Eren and Armin looked wide eyed over the collection of weapons left on her bed. Eren had changed out of his uniform and into some normal clothing, packed a few things in his backpack, including some nonperishable food and the note for his mom before meeting Armin at Mikasa's.

"I know your dad took us to the range when we were younger." Armin picked up one of the large rifles. "But something tells me I'm gonna be worse at shooting this than the pistol."

"The crossbow is yours, Armin." Mikasa held up a small not between her fingers as she gestured to the weapon leaning up against the bed. "My dad's orders. It's quieter in case we need a weapon without firing off the gun and its more your style."

Eren held up a gun similar to the one he remember shooting as a kid. "What'd your dad say about me?"

Mikasa was putting a smaller gun in the holster on her thigh, unable to keep a smile off her lips. She looked up at him before adjusting the sheath strapped on her back. "He said not to let Eren shoot himself on accident."

He grunted as he pulled on a holster around his waist. "Yeah, very funny."

"He said to take the handguns, you're in better control of those." She tossed him one off her bed.

Eren caught it, holding it in both his hands. What choice did they have at this point? It was life or death now. He slid one into a holster before grabbing the others off the bed too. Mikasa started loading everything else into a duffle bag, her own backpack slung over her shoulder.

"We still have hours of daylight so we should be okay traveling today." Eren grabbed his bag from off the floor and his bat before heading out of the room, the others following behind him.

It was strange, leaving the house he had been in countless times armed with weapons and supplies for a trip on the road in Armin's grandfather's SUV. Eren held the door open for them as they walked back outside. The sun was still shining over them, the air warm and fresh. It wasn't exactly the weather one expected for an apocalypse.

Armin popped the hatchback and started loading his bags in. He gestured for them to hand over their bags as well. Eren handed over his bag but held onto his bat; he felt strangely comforted still holding it. Mikasa was the last to get her stuff in, laying the bag with their weapons on top. Armin carefully shut the door before looking over to them.

"Okay," he said, rubbing his hands together. "I've got a map in the car so we can mark a good route. I'd say to use the GPS but when I tried to use my cellphone earlier there was no signal, so I'm assuming satellites and all that stuff that makes our life easier is out. We'll just go as far as we can."

"Sounds like a plan." Eren opened the backseat door gesturing for Mikasa to get in while Armin took the front seat once more. He looked around his empty neighborhood and at his eerily quiet house. He could almost see Colonel Arlert sitting on his porch where he liked to read in the summer, Mrs. A digging in her garden as Mr. A was pulling in the driveway on his police bike. Eren's mom would be at the door, yelling at Eren to not see how high he could throw his ball up on the house, Armin trying not to act excited at just how high the ball could get, and Mikasa standing with that scarf around her neck to hide her smile. It seemed like yesterday.

"Eren?"

He turned back to the car to see Mikasa watching him. "Yeah, I'm coming." He jumped in the backseat and shut the door. Armin started to drive down the road before tossing a map at them.

"I can get us in the right direction but just highlight the best route you can."

Mikasa grabbed the map from Eren's hands but he went to reach for the map she now held out of his reach.

"And behave before I have to split you two up." Armin glared through the rearview mirror but his smile was pulling at his lips.

Eren shook his head as he sat back up letting Mikasa have the map. She started to unfold it on her lap; he looked at all the little lines, all the different ways they could go.

Yeah, the world had gone to hell. Yeah, everything they knew was over. But his family was still alive. The guns on his waist, on his back pressed up against his body as he sat; his bat leaning up against the car door. He fully intended on keeping it that way.


	2. The First Survivors

**Summery: **_After discovering what now roams their world, Eren, Mikasa, and Armin follow the letter left to them by Carla Jaeger, hoping to find some sort of safety. It starts off as planned, but these things never go the way you want them to._

**Pairing: **_Eren/Mikasa_

**Rating: **_M (for violence, and language)_

**Notes:** _Thank you guys so much for all your wonderful feedback, follows, and favorites! They meant so much and they were so helpful in writing future chapters ^^ __dendensushicosplay __and I are back with the next installment of the story! A little more action and a few new characters thrown into the mix. Eventually all the 104th and others will make an appearance but a little at a time. Still working on getting a basis for the characters and their relationships down cause I know I haven't given them much downtime, I do plan on that (and some eremika ;D ) in this chapter and the near future and I hope you enjoy this one for now! ^^_

**The First Survivors**

Eren held out the map in front of him. "Uh." He peered out the passenger window trying to read street signs. "I think it's a right up here."

"You think?" Armin batted away the map that was drifting into his view of the road. "You're a shitty navigator. I'm replacing you."

Ere glanced in the backseat; Mikasa was still laying out on the seat, her chest rising and falling in a steady, rhythmic pattern. He had jumped into the front seat when he saw her starting to doze off, wanting to at least let her lay down. Yeah, they hadn't been on the road all that long but he couldn't blame her for being exhausted after everything that had gone one today. "Well, she's still out cold so you're stuck with me."

Armin sighed as he made a right turn. "If you get us lost I might just feed you to a Biter myself."

"This isn't a joking matter."

"I beg to differ. We have to joke about it. If not we'll start to realize just how horrible the world has turned. Especially in times of peace like this. They won't last long."

Eren looked over at the blond, but his eyes were still on the road. While he agreed with Armin, at least laughing about the situation made it seem a little less life threatening, something else was rubbing him the wrong way. "What's gotten into you? Not like you to be so argumentative."

Armin gave him a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry. It's just all this, it's all so much. I'm just…" he paused, searching for the right word. "Nervous, you know?" Another apologetic smile crossed his lips as he looked over to Eren. "I shouldn't take it out on you."

Eren put the map down in his lap. "Don't worry about it. There's nothing that could have prepared us for _this _no doubt we'll all end up snapping on each other at some point. Well, except maybe Mikasa; nerves of steel that one has."

"I would disagree with you there. I'm pretty sure theres things that could even push her off the edge," Armin said, a different sort of smile on his face, but Eren paid no mind.

It was just so surreal. Was this really their world now? Did all this really happen? He shook his head. No use to dwell on it when it clearly had happened. It had been a pretty quiet ride so far, granted very slowly what with the crowded streets and Armin not wanting to make too much noise. It had been an hour and they were barely out of their city.

He could see them outside his window every now and then. Sunlight didn't seem to bother them but provided they didn't have a reason to come out they didn't really. Eren saw them in alleyways, wandering around; some were moving along the sidewalks, always a few at a time but they didn't notice the SUV much.

"What do you think caused it?" Eren leaned his head against the window watching the buildings go by. "I doubt it was the undead rising from their graves to take revenge on the living."

Armin chuckled. "No I don't think that particular trope is right in this situation." He paused for a moment causing Eren to look over; he could almost see the cogs turning in Armin's head. "Well, we know it's contagious; one bite seems to do the trick. If you don't get completely eaten you turn into a Biter ready to spread more infection. From that I'd say it's a virus of sorts, where it came from I have no idea though."

"My dad might." That seemed to get Armin's attention as he looked over. "In the note, my mom said my dad warned her before things got bad. Maybe he knows or saw something at the hospital while he was working."

Armin was quiet, his face distant telling Eren he was working something out in that head of his.

"What?" Eren asked, lifting his head off the glass. That look on Armin's face was never a good one.

He shook his head in response. "Nothing. Let's just hope he made it to the facility and he'll have some answers."

Eren opened his mouth to ask what he meant but any words were cut short by him almost falling into the dashboard as Armin slammed on the brakes. Eren reached back to make sure Mikasa didn't fall off the seat as they skidded to a stop but she was already sitting up and alert, her eyes focused on outside the window. He slowly turned his head to see what she was staring at, what made Armin stop suddenly.

The sight made his stomach drop.

A herd of Biters were rushing across the road. They paid no mind to them; they seemed to be more focused on traveling down that side road.

"What the fuck," Eren muttered watching them limp and drag themselves. A few bumped into the car as they tried to get around, jostling the SUV. Eren didn't need an answer anymore once he heard the distinct crack of a gunshot. The Biters went crazy, moving faster, groaning, pouring out all around them.

Armin threw the car in reverse, slamming on the gas. "We're gonna get surrounded," he said as Eren was pressed into the seat by the force of the car. There was a sickening crunch as the SUV shook but Armin didn't stop. Unfortunately, running over the bastards got their attention. Biters came at the car as they moved; arms outstretched and mouths open wide. Armin slammed on the brakes before jerking the car forwards, tires skidding down a nearby road. The Biters were following, Eren could see them in the mirror, but the car was quickly outracing them.

"We need to find where that gunshot came from." Mikasa was sitting up still, her body leaning in between the two front seats. "Clearly they are in trouble if they fired off a shot near that horde."

Eren wanted to tell her no, that we can't save every person dumb enough to shoot a gun here but he knew himself and his friends better; if they had the power to help they would, it wasn't much of a question. Though as they sped along the road a thought wouldn't leave the back of his mind; there might come a time when he would have to sacrifice others to save his friends in this world.

"The gun shot didn't seem too far away. If we could just follow the Biters…" Eren leaned over the dashboard to get a better look.

Another gun shot.

Armin turned the car down a side road, a residential road.

Another one; closer this time.

The tires skidded as Armin turned once more. "I know where we are. I have a funny feeling I know where those shots are coming from too."

Another turn and Armin had to slam on his breaks. Thankfully Eren was getting used to that and braced himself before he fell out of his seat again. There they were, a horde of Biters; Armin got as close as he could but he still kept their distance.

The gunshot was so close Eren's ears started ringing. There. He could see someone standing on top of a van in the center of the hoard, hands of the Biters reaching up as the person tried to get them away.

"We need to get them off the car and into a nearby house for safety." Armin's hands were gripping the steering wheel, his eyes focused on the scene in front of him.

Wait, them? Eren squinted towards the figure. He couldn't tell who it was but there was a body laying on top of the van; he had no idea if they were dead or alive.

"No that won't work." Mikasa shook her head. "They'll break down the doors. We need to get back to the van and get out of here. Armin, get on the roof and shoot down. Eren and I will get them out. Be ready to take off as soon as we start to come back."

Without another word all three doors opened. Eren could hear Armin pulling himself up to the roof. The Biter's weren't paying much attention to them but that was going to change real soon. Mikasa tossed his bat at him while she met him on the other side of the van. He ran his fingers over the familiar wood in his hands, still blood stained from the school. She stood next to him, her sword unsheathed and out in front of her.

And that was it. He started to run towards the swarmed van, knowing Mikasa was close behind. It wasn't until Eren knocked the first one in the head the Biters noticed them. Suddenly they were a lot more interested.

Eren swung his bat at every head that came near him but it was barely getting them anywhere near the van. Every time one went down, two more showed up around him. He could see Mikasa close by, heads falling as quickly as she could move her arms.

Hands grabbed at his clothing, pulling him forwards but Eren sent another hit, knocking it down. It was when hands grabbed behind him that he knew he had a problem. He tried to swing his body around, his bat behind his head to get a hit at the Biter, but it fell to the ground before he could, an arrow in its head.

With a grin, Eren turned back towards the swarm at hand; he was glad to know Armin had gotten better with his aim since they were kids. It wasn't getting any thinner, it was only surrounding them.

"Shit. Shit," he mumbled to himself as he knocked another one to the ground. This had been a mistake. What had they been thinking? Just cause they got lucky once they could just tear down hordes of Biters?

He felt Mikasa's back press up against his, her head brushing against his own. At least she was still with him.

"We're gonna get surrounded no matter what." Eren kicked one in the stomach to get it far enough away from him before swinging his bat at its head. "Just try and move towards the van."

She started to move away but still stayed close to him; Eren could feel her movements behind his back. A few arrows whizzed by generally hitting something from what Eren could tell but not nearly enough. Fuck. This still wasn't working. Eren reached behind his back, grabbing a gun and pulling it out in front of him. He tried to remember what Mr. A had taught him but this wasn't really a time for a walk down memory lane.

"Mikasa, get my back," he shouted before turning towards the van.

Safety off. Aim. Shoot.

The recoil shot through his arm almost making him drop the gun. He didn't get any by the van in the head. In fact he only succeeded in pissing off the ones by the van so not they wanted to come after him. Eren aimed again firing off another shot. A Biter who had been reaching up to the van dropped down. He hit his bat against the head of one who was getting too close to him before he aimed again. He couldn't see Mikasa but since he wasn't getting attacked he figured she was okay.

Another shot; this time in the back. A little higher and another one down.

Eren heard a gunshot that wasn't from him. It had to have been whoever was on the van but he had other things to worry about. He fired off another shot.

"Hurry and jump down!" he yelled before trying to clear out the small area with his bat so they had a place to land. A few fell around him courtesy of Armin. Eren turned his head around to see Mikasa's black hair whipping around as she started to pave a path back out.

"Aren't you my hero."

The voice startled him; it wasn't one he was expecting to hear, but one he knew all too well. Eren's head snapped to the top of the van for the first time since he got closer. "You've got to be fucking shitting me. We were saving you?"

Jean had the courtesy of flipping Eren off before reaching down to heave the body of the other person over his shoulder. Eren caught a glimpse of black hair; it really could only be one person, Marco.

Eren held up his bat again hitting one that got too close across the face. "If I had known it was you I would have made them keep going."

Jean's feet hit the ground but it wasn't very well timed on his part. A sharp swing and Eren took out the one diving towards the now unarmed Jean.

"Well, it's not like your fucking face is the last thing I want to see before I die."

A head flew across the area, smashing into a Biter over Eren's shoulder. He glanced over at Mikasa who was kicking a now headless body to the ground.

"Can you two stop bickering for a moment." She swung her sword at a Biter lunging for her. "And run."

Eren didn't need to be told twice. "Stay between me and Mikasa." He shoved Jean forward after the girl who had already started paving a path.

He shoved his gun back in the holster and tightened his grip on the handle before running after Jean and Mikasa. Anything that moved towards them he swung at; heads, hands, shoulders, legs, whatever. He hit the bat down at a set of hands reaching for Marco's body before knocking it in the head. All the gun shots must have brought more of them because no path they made stayed clear for more than a few seconds. He couldn't even see the SVU they had left.

"Armin!" Mikasa shouted ahead of him.

Another Biter trying to get Jean went down when Eren swung at it. Her voice wasn't pained or worried, it was a warning to get ready. They were close now.

There was the top of the blue car, sliding in front of Mikasa. The back door was already opened for them and Eren shoved his body at Jeans to get them in. He clambered in practically on top of the others. Hands reached in after them but Eren slammed the door as Armin took off down the road.

"Take a left up here," Jean wheezed, not bothering to sit up as Armin swiftly turned the car. "And a right at the end of the street. My Aunt's house might be safe."

Eren twisted his body to look out the window behind them. The Biters were following but were getting out driven quickly.

Mikasa spun around in the passenger seat. "Is everyone okay?"

Still panting, Eren gave her a thumbs up. Jean was pulling himself up into the seat, Marco's body crumpled up by the door.

"Is he okay?" Armin didn't glance behind, his eyes firmly on the road.

"Yeah," Jean breathed, trying to help Marco sit up. "He fell when we were running and hit his head pretty bad. Knocked him right out."

"We can take a look if your aunt's house looks secure enough. It's gonna get dark soon anyway. We shouldn't be on the road." Armin slowed the car down as he took the right Jean pointed out.

Eren had his head leaned against the headrest. Clearly they needed to stay away from high residential areas. He glanced out the window; no Biters were following them and none seemed to be lingering around. There all probably were drawn over to where they had cause the commotion.

"It's the blue one right here." Jean pointed to a house nearby, one without a car in the driveway, like most the houses they passed. Armin carefully turned in and turned off the car. He looked back at everyone. "We should stay here if we can, get some sleep and try and relax as much as we can."

"What then? What the hell are we supposed to do now? Did you see those things?" Jean didn't look particularly thrilled; his adrenaline must have been wearing off as realization set in.

Armin hesitated as his eyes flickered to the house

"We'll talk about it when we're inside and we know everyone is alright okay?" Eren turned to open his door, hearing the others do the same. He slung his bat over his shoulder before reaching out to place a hand on Armin's shoulder while Mikasa helped Jean get Marco out of the car. Armin didn't look up at him, just kept staring a head, his crossbow in his hands.

"You did good out there, you know. You can join Mikasa in people who have saved my ass in one day." Eren could hear Armin snort in laughter and that was good enough for him.

"She keeps a key under the plant on the steps," Jean grunted but kept his voice low. Armin hurried to find it with Jean following as Eren filed in line; Mikasa was off to his side but he could feel her eyes on him.

"I'm fine, Mikasa. I don't feel the sudden urge to eat any of you. Well, knock Jean upset the head maybe."

She didn't say anything in response but Eren still looked over at her. She was watching Armin slowly open the door, crossbow up and ready. She didn't have any blood or cuts anywhere either, at least that he could see.

Armin popped his head back out. "Seems all clear. We should do a better check though."

Eren followed Jean through the front door into the small house. It seemed pretty peaceful but that meant nothing these days. Jean placed Marco on the couch and Eren could see the nasty wound on his forehead.

"Hey, Eren?"

He turned around to see Armin behind him, his bow turned downwards.

"Would you mind checking the rest of the house?"

It was then Eren noticed the way the weapon was shaking in Armin's unsteady hands. "Yeah of course. Go help Jean and start figuring out our plan."

He nodded before heading into the living room.

"You too," Eren gestured to Mikasa who was still standing next to him. "I'm pretty sure I can handle it."

She hesitated, like she wanted to say something but she followed after Armin.

Eren turned to head up the stairs, his bat outstretched in front of him. Their talking probably would have brought out any Biters hiding but he had to be sure in case. He carefully opened each door. Bathroom, safe. Closet, safe. Bedroom, safe. Other closet, safe. Second bedroom, safe. It looked like they lucked out though Eren knew that luck was not going to last very long at all. He walked back down the stairs and into the living room.

Armin was wrapping Marco's head while Jean sat on the floor watching. Mikasa was sitting in an armchair nearby, her eyes glancing at him when he came in.

"All safe upstairs." He sat down in one of the chairs. He nearly groaned aloud at the sudden comfort of his body; he didn't even notice how much his body was aching until he stopped running.

"Good, we can stay the night here then." Armin stood up from his spot, Marco looking well bandaged though still unconscious.

"Why only the night? If it's safe we should stay put until this is all over?"

Clearly, Jean hadn't seen enough horror movies. "We're going to my dad's research lab, that's where our parents are." Eren stretched his arms over his head. "Besides, just cause this place is safe now doesn't mean it will tomorrow. And unless your aunt had a knock for conspiracy theories I doubt there's enough supplies to last God knows how long this is gonna last."

Jean scowled but didn't say anything else.

"Erens right." Armin moved to sit by Marco's legs. "We need to keep moving and get to safety. You two are more than welcome to come with us."

"I wouldn't say that," Eren grunted. A car ride stuck with Jean in the backseat sounded less appealing than having a Biter rip his guts out.

"We can't just leave them here. It will at least be safe at the lab," Mikasa said causing Eren to glare over. And of course Jean got that smug ass look on his face.

"Traitor," he mouthed to her.

She rolled her eyes but he could see a smile pulling at her lips.

Jean opened his mouth, probably to make some snarky comment like normal but Armin cut him off. "How did you make it out of the school?"

Jean shrugged. "We ran and just kept running. All those bastards-"

"Biters," Eren interjected.

"Whatever. Seemed more interested in getting in the school than too many chasing us. We made it to our neighborhood without too much trouble and found my mom frantically shoving stuff in the car, my dad helping. I told them to stop and just go; we had seen Biters coming this way not to mention the ones that followed us. But it was too late we were surrounded." He paused and rubbed his temples with his hands. "They got my mom first. My dad tossed me his gun before trying to help her but it was useless." He paused again, his hands looking down at his hands. "Marco dragged me away so when he fell I dragged him on top of the van and tried not to die.

Eren felt the guilt in his stomach. He had to remember they had been relatively lucky, not everyone had that relief.

"Jean, I'm so sor-" Armin started to say but Jean helped his hand up to stop him.

"It's fine. We're alive." He looked up from staring at the ground and sighed. "What about you guys? We had gym so it was easy to run; you were in school when it happened."

"Armin was once again smarter than all of us and got out before it got bad." Eren said. "And I just got luck Miss Captain of the Martial Arts Club came to find me."

"And saved you."

"And apparently gave her a big ego."

Jean nodded but his brow furrowed. "So what's this about a lab then?"

Armin moved like he was going to explain but a gasp from Marco cut him off.

"Hey, look whose awake." Eren leaned forward in his chair, watching the dark haired boy whose eyes were fluttering open.

Marco groaned, his hands reaching over his face.

"How are you feeling?" Armin asked, looking over at his head to make sure the bandage was holding on.

"Like I got hit by a car." His hands fell to his sides, eyes blinking as his surroundings started to set in on him. "Where am I?" He tried to sit up but seemed to get dizzy. Jean reached his hands up to help him not fall over.

"Jesus, Jean." He groaned again as he helped him sit up, Jean taking a seat next to him. "I had the weirdest dream."

Eren leaned back in his seat as Marco carefully looked at everyone in the room. Jean placed a hand on his shoulder as realization hit Marco's face. Armin met Eren's eyes, and he could see Mikasa out of the corner of his eyes looking over at them as well. If only it was a dream.


	3. The Bite

**Summary: **_After a night not so restful night,__they set off, with their new companions, on the road to the lab. Of course, a lot of planning has to go into an apocalypse including gathering as many supplies as they can. _

**Pairing: **_Eren/Mikasa_

**Rating: **_M (for violence and language)_

**Notes:** _Jason__ finished up going over everything one last time and here's the chapter I wrote mostly at work one day when I finished out project two hours before anyone else haha. I actually like this chapter a lot, so I hope you guys do as well! I took advantage of some of the down time to hopefully give some character backgrounds in this universe (and some early eremika :3)._

**Chapter 3: The Bite**

Hands were everywhere. They were grabbing at Eren, pulling him, shoving him, cutting into his skin. He couldn't even move. He couldn't see any faces or even bodies, just the hands. He heard a cry nearby that send chills to his very core. He frantically tried to look but the sky was so dark how could he see anything?

He tried to call out Mikasa's name but his throat was dry, his voice long gone. He heard her cry out in the darkness again but he couldn't move, the cold hands held him firmly in place. He couldn't go to her, couldn't help her. He felt his stomach drop, bile rising to his throat. Eren tried to call for Armin, but it was no use. Deep down he knew Armin was gone too. There was no one anymore.

The darkness seemed to part for a moment, causing Eren to see a body tossed on the floor in front of him. His heart clenched. He knew that long brown hair, the broken body underneath the simple dress. He hadn't gotten to his mom in time either.

The hands started to pull him away, Eren struggling in their grasp. He could feel the warm, stale breath of mouths all around him. The hands tightened on him and he could feel the dozens of groaning mouths get closer to his skin.

Eren's eyes opened as his body snapped up in bed. His eyes were wide as he tried to catch his breath and look at his surroundings; his heart was racing and he could feel the thin layer of sweat coating his body. The room was dark and unfamiliar, but the blonde head of hair sleeping soundly on the other side of the bed was very familiar. It was just a dream. Armin was okay which meant Mikasa was okay too.

He threw his legs over the edge of the bed and quietly exited the guest room that had been left to him, Mikasa, and Armin. He carefully shut the door behind him and headed over to the stairs. Jean hadn't been a fan of letting them all stay in the same room but before Eren could tell him how ridiculous he was being, that they had shared rooms since they were kids, Mikasa stepped in and said she'd take first watch. Jean scowled like normal but didn't argue anymore which satisfied Eren enough.

The lights were all off, in case that kinda stuff drew Biters in, but the clock ticking on the wall as Eren walked down the stairs told him it was about 3am. He rubbed his eyes as he hit the last stairs, but the moment his eyes were closed all he could see were Biters coming at him. So that's how sleeping was gonna be now, huh.

He turned the corner to where the living room was and he could see Mikasa's dark hair, her eyes staring out the window as a rifle laid across her lap. A knot in his stomach relaxed when he saw her there.

Her head turned to look at him as he walked into the small living room.

"Eren? What are you doing up?"

He plopped down on the couch, where she was leaning up against from her spot on the floor, his legs tossed up on the cushions as his back hit the armrest. "Armin's snoring again."

"It's not Armin who snores, it's you."

Eren could see her turning he head to look at him, about to give him that all knowing look she had, but he nudged her in the back with his leg before she could. "How's it looking out there?"

"Not much activity from what I can tell." Mikasa's head rolled back onto the couch, bumping into Eren's thigh. "I see a few Biters walk by every now and then but it seems as long they don't know we are here, they don't see us."

"So sound draws their attention huh." Eren reached up to rub his eyes again. He was exhausted and just wanted to go back to sleep he wasn't ready to live through that again just yet.

Mikasa nodded, her head still leaning against him. "Seems like it. Probably a mix of sight and smell too. Clearly they can see and I can imagine that we smell different from them."

"Well, the most of us. Though it's good to know they won't attack Jean."

Mikasa reached behind her head to hit Eren wherever she could. Unsurprisingly, she got him right in the gut.

"Okay okay," he grunted, swatting her hand away. She settled back down in front of him and he placed his hands behind his head. A silence settled down over them, one Eren was familiar with when it came to Mikasa. Despite the hell he knew was raging outside, this was almost peaceful; just a brief moment of it. Tomorrow it would be back to running though hopefully they wouldn't have to face a horde like they did today, but who even knew what the day or the next days were about to bring. Eren ran his fingers through his hair. All they could do know was just fight.

He could see Mikasa's head starting to fall to her chest before snapping back up. He waited a moment before she did it again, and nudged her head with his knee. "Alright, we're switching out." He pushed himself up and reached for the gun in her lap but she held it just out of his reach. "Go up to bed."

"I'm fine. You go back to sleep, clearly you weren't sleeping well to begin with."

Eren should have assumed he didn't need to tell her why he was awake for her to know. "Well, I'm awake now and you're falling asleep so you're getting booted. Go on." He leaned down and plucked the gun from her hands, proving that she was in fact tired since Mikasa had the best reflexes he knew. He nudged her again with his feet. "Armin's still out cold I'm sure, so you don't need to worry about waking him up."

She swatted at his feet but still pushed herself up to stand. Eren leaned up against the back of the couch his eyes moving towards the window when he noticed she wasn't moving. He looked over to tell her to just get her ass in bed already but he caught her eyes, and he knew that look. Eren was never the one who had problems sleeping, that had been Mikasa since he knew her.

"Alright," he gestured for her to come over.

Mikasa moved back over before her body curled up on the opposite side of the couch, her feet just brushing by Eren's legs. "Goodnight," she yawned, her eyes fluttering closed.

"Night." Eren held onto the gun as he watched the window closely. She had been right not much movement outside, barely any walkers that he could see. It was pretty dark out, but Eren couldn't even pick out motions. God, Mikasa must have been so bored. He looked over at her, her chest falling and rising, her feet already pushing their way into his lap. He rolled his eyes but didn't move her; she looked like she had already fallen asleep.

He wasn't all that surprised; she always fell asleep when he was around her. Her knocks on his window in the middle of the night, and her late night calls when she couldn't sleep were common on any night they weren't together, especially as they got older and her parents decided co-ed sleepovers weren't age appropriate anymore; though Eren's mom never got mad when she'd wake him up for school only to find Mikasa curled in his bed. He knew she had nightmares still even though it had almost been seven years since the night he found her shivering and terrified in park, and for whatever reason she could sleep easier around him.

He never really understood what drove his nine year old self to run off from his dad on the sidewalk and take off into the large and rather dark park except that he heard a girl's cry. Even at nine it was enough to send chills down his spine, he had to help her, there wasn't an option. Mikasa was a lot smaller back then, she was so frail as she tried to squirm away from the two men who had surrounded her; one was looming over her, and the other had her hands pinned to her back, his hand over her mouth to muffle her cries. Eren would never forget what they looked like, or the rage he felt surging through his body as he ran at them.

Obviously he would have never managed to take them down, they were twice his size but a boy running and shouting at them and his father chasing behind him must have scared them off enough for them to run. He fell down to his knees next to Mikasa, a girl he had never even seen before and held her while she cried, while his dad called the police. She was shivering and terrified but she just held onto him. Eren always rolled his eyes when he thought of his younger self thinking Mikasa was shivering because she was cold so he gave her his red scarf, the one she never took off again.

He glanced over at Mikasa, still sleeping soundly, her cheek pressed against her arm and her scarf poking out from under her short hair. His dad had yelled at him at putting his life in danger like that but Eren didn't care then and he still didn't. He might not ever admit it to anyone but himself, but he had gotten so used to her warm presence near him, the one that always seemed to calm him down.

Eren reached up and tugged the throw blanket that was tossed over the back of the couch; he draped it over her body before going back to looking out the window.

So this was how it was gonna be now; sleepless days and sleepless nights. Eren held the gun in one hand, the other resting on Mikasa's legs. But if that's what it took to survive that's how it would be.

That's how he intended it to be at least, but by the time he felt a hand on his shoulder shaking him, Eren realized he wasn't much of a night watch himself. He was aware of the hand on his shoulder, his name being called softly; his body was against something warm, something soft. He blinked against the sunlight shining through the window as he lifted his head up. Armin was kneeling in front of the couch, his face full of amusement.

"Good morning, sunshine."

Eren blinked as he looked around, his mind slowly waking up. The gun wasn't in his hand anymore, it had been discarded sometime in the night; one arm was tucked underneath him, his back to the couch, the other was draped around Mikasa who was just stirring awake as well.

"Sleep well?"

Eren sat up trying to untangle his legs from the blanket Mikasa was still under. It was far from the first time Armin woke them up, though he was thankful it was Armin; Eren didn't he could deal with Jean's annoying voice first thing in the morning.

"Sleep well, yes, watch well, apparently not," he yawned stretching his arms over his head.

"It's okay, no one gotten eaten so I won't tell. Since you are so nicely rested we can get an early start. I already brought your stuff down from upstairs."

Eren waved Armin off and that ridiculous grin of his; though it was then he realized he didn't have any more nightmares for the rest night. "So what's the plan then?" he asked leaning up against the couch.

"Shouldn't you wait for your whole team, you ass," Jean grunted as he stepped into the room from the staircase, Marco behind him, and both with bags on their back. Guess they decided to stay put, how wonderful. Eren rolled his eyes at Jean but didn't respond; it really wasn't worth it.

"Well," Armin started, looking around to make sure Eren was going to stay quiet. "We should just load up and go. We might want to stop and fill up containers of gas, maybe see if we can get some more medical supplies but other than that we need to just drive to safety."

"Wait." Marco still had a bandage around his head, his forehead scrunched together underneath it. "You mean like stealing?"

"It's not stealing if there's no one alive to pay," Eren's shrugged, turning his head to look out the window. It's not like he enjoyed the idea of going into stores and just taking what they wanted but what choice did they have now? It was life or death. "It looks pretty clear out; we should take advantage of that and get out."

"Grab what you need then." Armin picked up his crossbow, the keys to the SUV in his hand. "The sooner we get there the better."

Mikasa reached down to the gun Eren had dropped sometime last night and tossed it over to Jean. "Do you know how to use it?"

He looked down at the large weapon now in his hands and Eren was inclined to think no.

"I'll manage," Jean answered.

Eren pushed himself up to his feet but not before grabbing his bat from off the floor. He followed Armin out the door, knowing the others would follow as well. The warm morning hit him the moment they stepped outside; the air was fresh and clear, the neighborhood quiet. It would have seemed like a normal day, but the obscene of even the birds, of the hum of electricity, the rumbling of car engines, of people was more eerie than calming.

Armin opened the driver's side door, taking his spot behind the wheel. Eren went to the walk to the passenger side door but Armin stopped him. "Someone who can maybe read a map please?"

"Really, Armin?" Eren arched an eyebrow. "You're gonna make me cram in the back?"

"I'm sorry, we don't have time to get lost." His voice was apologetic but his eyes had amusement in them. Oh, he was going to get pay back for this one.

"I'll do it," Marco said, coming up behind Eren. "I'm pretty good with maps."

That left him, Mikasa, and …Jean in the back. Oh, Armin was so going to pay for this. Eren stepped out of the way so Marco could get in and moved to open the backseat door only to see Jean already sitting on the other side, looking too smug for Eren's liking. He opened the door but stepped back.

"If you think I'm sitting between you and him you're insane." Mikasa was standing next to him, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously." Her face was firm, unrelenting; it would be useless to even try.

"Neither of you are allowed to say a thing if I push him out the door." Eren stepped in the car and slid himself in the center seat, at least that smug look go wiped off Jean's face. Mikasa took her seat next to Eren and shut the door.

Armin looked in the rearview mirror as he started to back out the driveway. "Now I know how your parents felt when they took us on long drives."

"Just go straight down this road and take a left," Marco said as he held the map up, his eyes following the route. "We should be able to stop in the next town over for gas and supplies."

Armin nodded in response to his new navigator but his eyes were already on the road.

Eren turned to Mikasa, because it was much better sight than turning towards Jean; he head was already looking out the window though. A few slow moving Biters could easily be seen shuffling around in a yard as they drove by and it sent a cold shiver down Eren's spine. Yeah, he had fought off a shit ton of them yesterday, but seeing them walking around first thing in the morning gave him a harsh reminder of what their world had become. He gripped his hands around the bat in between his legs.

Eren leaned back in his seat, his eyes looking out the windshield. From what he could tell the road was pretty clear, though Armin was still taking it slow. Eren flopped his head over to look out Mikasa's window. Biters were still around but not nearly as much as he expected, not nearly as much as he knew was out there.

"I wonder why there's so few of them around. After what we've seen I would expect them to be everywhere."

"Maybe it has something to do with the noise," Marco said, though his eyes looked like they hadn't moved from the map at all. "It's possible some other large commotion drew them out like we drew them in."

Eren snorted. "That was just because someone was dumb enough to fire off a gun in the first place."

"It's not like we had a choice. We were going to die." Jean's tone was practically showing the scowl on his lips.

"You could have been smarter about it that's all I was saying."

"If I recall, you completely missed the first time you fired that gun."

Eren had started out just wanting to irritate Jean but he could feel his jaw clenching as he looked over. "I'm sorry I was too busy knocking the heads of Biters with a Goddamn bat trying to save your life."

"Well, maybe you should-"

"Oh my God," Armin said much louder than anyone expected. "Can you two pretend to get along so I don't turn this car around, because I will."

Marco clasped a hand over his mouth as he tried to hide his laughter. "Turn left at the stoplight."

Eren gritted his teeth but he looked back out the windshield. They were going to need another car or someone was getting tossed; his dad's lab never seemed as far away as it did right now. His head rolled back against the seat, his eyes staring at the ceiling. Eren supposed he shouldn't be so petty, so argumentative; they were lucky to be alive, Jean and Marco even more so. Their lives were so shaken now, so out of place that maybe Eren just wanted some kind of normality in their lives again.

Armin and Marco were talking about something in the front, were Jean and Mikasa sat in silence on either side of him. He hoped aside from the short pit stop they were making they could just go all the way to the lab unhindered. Once they were there they'd get some answers, his dad had to know something, there had to be something that they could do. And he wanted to make sure their parents were okay; he couldn't help but glance over at Jean who had already lost his. They were more than a little lucky their parents got out when they did, Eren could only hope they made it there okay.

"There's a gas station over there," Mikasa said, knocking Eren from his thoughts.

He pulled his head up to see the oncoming and very deserted gas station.

"That's a good one," Marco said. "If I remember right there's a drug store up the street too we can stop by."

Armin pulled the SUV into the empty area, pulling up to one of the pumps. Jean was the first one out of the car, his gun in his hand as Eren followed Mikasa out of her side. He held his bat over his shoulder as he squinted against the sun. It really hadn't been that long since they got in the car, but he had a feeling this might be the last time they got out until they hit the lab.

"Marco, come help me get some gas cans while Armin fills up the tank," Jean nodded towards the gas station store.

Two was more than enough for one building and Eren already had enough close quarters with Jean to look forward to. "I think I'll check out the drugstore while you guys work here."

"Fire off two shots close together if you get in trouble. I know it will probably draw more out, but I'd rather know we can come and help you if you get surprised." Armin was already pumping gas into the car, his eyes drifting to the gas station to make sure they were okay too.

Firing off a gun wasn't going to do anyone any help, but he did understand what Armin was trying to say. "Alright," Eren said with a nod. "You guys come and get me if you hit trouble here."

"Okay, don't take too long if you can."

It was so quiet along the road, it was hard to get used to this level of silence, though he could hear Jean and Marco vaguely from where he was, and he could hear the footsteps on the pavement behind him.

"Mikasa, go back, I'll be fine."

"You shouldn't go off alone, no one should."

He turned his head to look at her; she was close behind him, her arms waving slightly at her sides, that usual determined look on her face.

"I'll be fine, I'm pretty sure I can get some band aids without getting killed."

Mikasa hesitated, looking behind her before looking back to him. "I'm a better fighter than you. Let me help."

While Eren hadn't been irritated before, he felt his jaw clenching down at his words; leave it to Mikasa it to make him feel like a child.

"I'm pretty sure I've killed just as many Biters as you, so back off a little, alright? There's not even a damn hoard around us. I'm fine, just trust me for once. Jesus." He turned back away from her, starting down the road again, his hands clutching his bat. He didn't look behind him, but he didn't hear her following anymore.

Almost instantaneously Eren felt guilty for snapping at her. He was just angry; he didn't need someone telling him he needed help all the time, that he wasn't capable of doing something on his own. He didn't need her always looking after him; he'd look after her by just doing his task. He could handle a few Biters if they were hiding, he'd handled much more in just less than 24 hours.

He still couldn't help but look back as he walked and he could see her retreating back at the gas station. Eren knew he hurt her feelings, which didn't help that sinking feeling in his stomach go away, but he'd apologize later. For now he just wanted to get supplies, and get back.

The drugstore was where Marco said it would be, just up the road. There weren't any Biters outside the building or lingering in the parking lot so that was a good sign, but it didn't mean it was safe inside. He held his bat up just in case as he walked through the automatic doors and into the building.

From the looks of it he wasn't the first person to come looking for supplies; product was all over the floors, shelves half hanging, entire fixtures toppled over. It was hard to see if anything was in the store through all the aisles, and the lights that had been shut off at some point but Eren grabbed a bag nearby the door and tried to find the medicine aisle. It was silent except for his footsteps against the tile floor, the occasional scrape of whatever was on the floor getting pushed away by his feet.

The medicine aisle was right next to the hair product aisle and he was pretty sure none of them needed to dye their hair anytime soon so he opened his bag and reached out to grab any kind of medicine he could get his hands on; pain reliever, muscle relaxer, fever medicine, cold medicine, antibiotics, bandages, wraps, anything he thought would be useful went in the bag.

He looked up once he reached the end of the aisle; maybe he should try and wander the store, see if there were some other usual things he could drag back. The others hadn't come for him so they must still be okay where they were. He started to walk to the back of the store looking for other small things they might need like flashlights and batteries, though he'd never admit to being a very good Boy Scout so he wasn't quite sure what he should be looking for. He reached out to grab a jug of water but it didn't really matter, because one more step and he heard the nauseating sound of a Biter's ragged breath.

Eren put the jug back as quietly as he could while his head looked up to the end of the aisle where the Biter was standing. He hadn't even heard it come up on him, but it didn't look like it had noticed him at all. Carefully Eren slide the bag handles onto his arm so both his hands could grab at the bat; he held it back above his head as he walked closer. The Biter must have gotten a smell because it lunged at him, the bat coming right down on its head. The Biter fell backwards into the shelves, causing them to fall but also causing it to stop moving. Eren breathed a sigh of relief as he put his bat on his shoulder again. He did take it as his cue to leave though.

He went to step over the Biter to get out, but a cold hand grasped down on his shoulder, pulling him backwards and almost right onto the ground. Eren swung his bat at its head, causing the Biter behind him to release its grasp and fall to the ground. He really had to get out of here now. Eren broke out into a run through the aisles trying to maneuver his way back to the front of the store; they came from the back so the front had to still be okay, he had only been here for a few minutes, but Eren was wrong.

Wherever these Biters had come from, they were straggling up near the glass doors, coming for him. That Biter that he knocked into the shelves must have been loud enough to draw them all out from their hiding places.

Eren gripped his bat but headed right for the door; he swung at the Biter's close to him until he had a path to the glass doors. He could feel them grabbing at his clothes, their breath hot near him, but Eren just kept running and hitting, breaking free of their grasp but not them. He knew they were still behind him as the sunlight hit him outside, but he had to keep running now, there was no way he could take on all of them and there was no way he was firing his gun and calling them _all _out of that building.

He could see the gas station nearby, the groans of the Biters still hot in his ears as the chased him up the street. Armin would see it or Mikasa who would be waiting for him, they'd see it, they'd see him getting chased. They'd come to help.

A hand grasped onto Eren's shirt nearly pulling him down, but he yanked his arm away with such force the Biter tripped on the pavement but there were more near him. He could see them out of the corner of his eye; he could feel them still trying to grab at him.

He could see them outside now, Armin and Mikasa already running forward, weapons in hand. Eren skidded to a halt, turning around to fight and to not let them get too close to the car. He swung his bat at the closest one, knocking it down but before he could swing at another, a hard grasp pushing his shoulder now, knocking him to his knees. Eren tried to whip around, he tried to swing his bat at the Biter above him, but he could already feel a sharp pain cut through his body, paralyzing him on the spot.

The world started to spin as he could feel blood flowing down his chest; he could see the Biter above him, mouth locking onto his shoulder as it tore at his skin.

"Eren!" Mikasa's voice was clear in his mind and he could vaguely see her near him, pushing the Biter off him and slicing it through with her sword. "Eren!" she cried again and he could see her leaning over him, her hand reaching out for his wound, tears on her cheeks as two hands pulled her away from him. She cried out, and kicked as she tried to get away but she was too far away from his vision now.

"Get him out of here!" someone yelled, but Eren couldn't tell who, his vision was blurring to the point of he could barely make out the sky anymore; he could barely make out light. He felt two hands grab him off the ground, but that was all, everything went black.

Eren knew he was in a car at one point, he could tell they were moving. He couldn't open his eyes to see, he couldn't even move. Everything hurt, like his body was stretching, being pulled apart at the seams.

"It's okay, Eren, it's going to be okay." The voice was gentle but urgent; he didn't have to see to know it was Mikasa. He could feel himself pressed up against her, his upper body in her lap maybe.

"This is ridiculous, you do realize we have to kill him don't you? You guys should have done it then, it's only going to get worse!"

Eren knew he never liked Jean.

A sharp pain severed through his upper body causing his whole body to tense as he could hear himself cry out. He felt pressure back on his shoulder, a rag maybe, a shirt; she was trying to keep him from bleeding out.

"Shh, it's going to be okay. I promise." A warm hand on his face.

"We can't take him with us, he's going to kill us all when he changes! Don't you think I haven't seen it before? My parents died and turned in front of my eyes. Stop the car before we a trapped in the car with him! I'm telling you, it's only going to make it harder if it isn't right now!"

Eren could hear a sob near his ear.

"Jean! Stop it! You aren't helping!" Marco this time but it was getting harder to discern voices; they were fading in and out. They were still talking, but he couldn't tell who it was or what they were saying, everything was getting heavy again; at least the pain was going away.

"All of you just shut the fuck up!" Armin's voice cut through the darkness. "If it comes down to it I'll be the one to do it. Right now we need to get to safety."

Eren could feel Mikasa's hand on him, brushing his hair out of his face as she whispered words to him; he had no idea what she was saying but her voice was lulling him off again.

Light of some sort was hitting Eren's face; he could feel it's warmth on him, and he could see it behind his eyes. He tried to open his eyes by it was so bright in the room it stung causing a sharp pain to go right for his head. He was in a bed now; he could feel the pillow behind his head, the blankets over him. His shirt was gone probably covered in blood somewhere; he tried to move but his body felt like a giant weight. He could feel a bandage rubbing against his chin; they must have taken care of his wound.

"Armin, we can't just lock him in here and wait for him to change over. That doesn't seem right." Marco's voice was far away, maybe outside the door.

There was silence and Eren thought maybe he just wasn't hearing well, but he could hear Armin sighing. "I've got one person who's wanted to put a bullet in his head since we put him in the car, and for good reasons honestly, and one person who I had to forcibly drag away from him because she wouldn't let anyone touch him. What am I supposed to do? He's my best friend. I can't just kill him but I can't just let him live like this."

He heard Marco start to say something but what it was Eren didn't know, he was already fading back.

Eren could actually feel his body this time. Yeah, he felt like he just got run over by a truck, but he could wiggle his fingers, his toes. He carefully opened his eyes, but there was no bright light to meet him, the sun had gone down already. He carefully pushed himself up in the bed, so he could sit up a little better; surprisingly, he felt no sharp pain come from his shoulder as he moved, just the dull ache of his body overall. He sat up as much as he could but something was on the blankets pulling them almost off him. He looked over to see Mikasa's body curled up on the bed, her back near his legs.

"What are you doing," he murmured. He wanted to reach out and touch her, but he retracted his hand. He shouldn't be alive right now. He distinctly remembered being bite, he felt its teeth sink into his skin. He should've either been killed or be a Biter himself, not laying on a bed seemingly okay.

Mikasa's head lifted, her sleepy eyes looking up at him. "Eren?"

"Yeah, it's me. I promise I'm not a mindless monster about to eat you. That I know of, at least."

He wanted to ask her what the hell happened but her arms were around his neck too fast, her head buried into the side of his neck that didn't have a bandage on it. "I thought you were going to die," her voice was soft.

"I didn't, it's okay," he put a hand on her head, but he felt that familiar guilt in his stomach. His last words with her were almost awful, and she still took care of him. He didn't deserve that from her at all. "What the fuck happened, Mikasa? I…I did get bit, didn't I?"

Mikasa sat back on her knees so she could look at him. "You did, I watched it happen. We got you out of there and brought you to a house once we out drove the Biters. We had no idea what to do, but since you didn't turn right away we just kept waiting and then…" She hesitated. "I don't know what happened but…"

"Just tell me already, please."

She didn't answer, but she leaned forward and reached for his bandage. She carefully pulled it off and tossed it aside. "We went to change the bandage for you a few hours ago and we saw that."

Eren looked over and he almost didn't believe his eyes. He remembered being bit, he remembered how it felt to feel his skin being pierced; he had to reach up with his hand and touch the perfectly smooth and unmarked skin to actually believe it. His wound was completely gone, not just healed; it looked like it was never there to begin with.

Eren's eyes widened as he felt his breath hitch in his throat.

"What the fuck?"


End file.
